Abram was 99 years old and God’s promise of a special son and heir through Sarai had still not been fulfilled. At this point, Ishmael was a 9-year-old boy. God came and renewed His promise (initiated in Genesis 15:8, confirmed in Genesis 17:2 and established in Genesis 17:7.) , calling Himself El Shaddai. (The name, “God Almighty”, expresses His ability to nourish us abundantly, as well as His power and His strength.) Abram had been waiting for endless years for God to use His power and provide an heir, and certainly could have felt hopeless at this point. God pointed out Abram’s responsibility: “Walk before me and be blameless” and He promised, “I will confirm my covenant between me and you and will greatly increase your numbers.”

If Abram had been wondering about God’s ability to act, he expressed no doubt, but fell facedown in worship. In this extremely moving encounter, God changed Abram’s name to Abraham, meaning “father of many.” It is interesting that God said, “I have made you a father many.” While the promise still had not been fulfilled in human terms, in God’s view it had already been accomplished.

God mercifully restated His covenant with this elderly man, indicating that He had not forgotten the covenant and the deed was already done. God had already made Abraham the father of many nations.

God explained His part of the covenant, and indicated that if Abraham was going to receive the covenantal blessings he would need to lead a blameless life. Abraham would show his commitment to a radically different lifestyle by a radical act—his own circumcision and that of all the males in his household. What seems like a strange covenantal requirement to us was actually part of a self-maledictory oath, according to the NIV. If Abraham and his descendants did not live blameless lives before God, God could cut them off from His promises.

Did God expect Abraham to live a life of perfection? Of course not—He knew Abraham better than that! But He did expect that Abraham’s thoughts and energies would be focused on pleasing Him.

In a parallel move to his renaming of Abraham, God had a new name for Sarai—Sarah, signifying that she would be the mother of kings. At this point, Abraham fell face down again, laughing to himself in disbelief. The thought of Sarah and his having children at their advanced age was too comical for belief!

If we wonder how Abraham might have felt about his 9-year-old son, Ishmael, his love was apparent when he asked God if Ishmael couldn’t be the heir to the promise. God was clear that Ishmael would indeed be blessed, but the heir to this covenant would be Isaac. God was sovereign, and the heir of His choosing had not yet been born.

Abraham’s response to God was immediate. On that very day, he and the men in his household were circumcised. In spite of the things he still could not understand, he believed God and was eager to live under God’s blessing.

It’s really amazing to see Abraham’s immediate response to God’s instructions. In spite of the years of waiting (or probably because of them), his relationship to God had grown and deepened and he demonstrated his belief in God’s promises by fulfilling his part of the covenant. As Abraham’s spiritual descendants, God expects us to commit ourselves to holy living as well. Ephesians 1:4 tells us that God chose us “to be holy and blameless in his sight.” The apostle Paul clearly describes the fact that, even for the believing child of God, sin will always be a struggle (Romans 7:21-24), but he also affirms that fact that “Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death” (Romans 8:1,2). I am called to be like Abraham, focusing my life on God and pleasing Him. “Not that I have already obtained all this or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.” (Philippians 3:23)

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